Generally, there are many types of telecommunication networks, which have been established for providing a variety of services to network subscribers. Certainly, the widely used and well-known service provided by telecommunication networks is mobile phone services, such as with cellular telephones. Meanwhile, several surface contacting cards with special circuits are widely used in electronic devices to enhance the functions of the electronic devices for providing more services. For example, a subscriber identity module (SIM) card could be placed into a portable phone to dedicate the phone's functions to the SIM card owner. Furthermore, some telecommunication networks provide other services that involve banking operations and transaction functions. However, the compact SIM card merely includes basic information of owner for providing a variety of services to network subscribers. When services of banking operations and transaction functions are provided, there should be a lot of data transmission between telecommunication networks because the compact SIM in the portable phone could not provide further information.
Moreover, IC cards are used in numerous applications such as payment at a point of sale (known as “bank cards”), public telephones, payment for parking, payment for tolls, mobile telephones (e.g., SIM cards), public transportation, or electronic purse. Each of these applications is associated with a specific card: a bank card, a phone card, a parking card, a SIM card for GSM telephony, and so on.
In practice, the problems ensuing from stolen and forged credit cards and cash cards are becoming more and more serious, and increased efforts are made to reduce the risks involved in this respect. Many solutions have been proposed, including time limits, limited withdrawals, duplicate encryption, and the identification of the card owner with all manner of means ranging from PIN codes to fingerprints, one-time passwords, etc. Regardless of the solutions applied, a fraudulent person is able to pass through the different barriers and obstacles with the aid of ever more sophisticated methods.
Furthermore, the use of mobile telephones or electronic wallets has also been a means of payment, and an increasing number of payments in greater sums will at times be made in electronic cash. False/cloned telephones and SIM cards already exist, and the use of telephones and SIM cards in respect of payments will increase the above-identified risks still more.
One of the problems encountered in daily use of such a variety of smart cards lies in that one of the cards might not be available when it is to be used, no matter whether it is left at home, its credit has been run out, or it has expired. In addition, administration and carry of various smart cards is inconvenient. Therefore, there is a strong need for the so-called “multi-application cards”.
Nowadays, a trend is obvious is that functions of the smart cards may be integrated into one SIM card or worked via an intermedia device. For the latter, a contactless transaction adaptor disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,424,757 is an example. Such kind of devices usually is in form of a laminated smart card interface and has two sides of contacts. One side is for connecting with a SIM card while the other side linked to the SIM card slot. Therefore, when a mobile phone is communicating with the SIM card, additional functions can be provided by the device through the SIM card slot along with the message from the SIM card. However, the contacts of the SIM card and the device are tiny and arranged closely. It is not easy for users to install the SIM card onto the device with corresponding contacts matched. This mismatch of contacts will lead circuit short, further causing the SIM card non-working. Hence, an auxiliary mounting structure used for mounting the smart card on to the SIM card easily is desired.